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Metropolitan Council created 40 years ago

The year 1967 was noteworthy for many reasons. It was the year the Israelis won the six-day war … that Dr. Christiaan Barnard performed the first successful heart transplant … that the microwave oven was introduced.

It also was the year that the Metropolitan Council was created by the Minnesota Legislature. The Council’s charge: to plan for the orderly, economical development of the seven-county area and coordinate the delivery of certain services that couldn’t be provided by any one city or county.

The Council's 40th anniversary provides an opportunity to reflect on the problems that led to its creation, assess the progress that has been made and think about the challenges that may lie ahead.